According to the dictionary, consumerism is a modern movement for the protection of the consumer against useless, inferior, or dangerous products, misleading advertising,unfair pricing, etc. Also being defined as “the concept that an ever-expanding consumption of goods is advantageous to the economy”. Consumerism can also be the belief that happiness and the wellbeing of a person depends on the level of person consumption, particularly on the purchase of material goods. The perfect example of a consumerist society is America. A consumerist society is one in which people spend a great deal of time, energy, resources and thought to “consuming”. Being in such a society, it is thought that spending is good and the more you do the better it is. However, consumerist societies fail to realize the negative effects of consumerism.

Consumerisms has been overlooked up until recent years. The United States has become dependent on consuming as the holidays have lost their true meaning, people are constantly delivered advertisements urging them to buy materials, the country is slowly becoming faithless, and society is trapped in a mindset of having more is ideally what is required to be happy. Looking back into history, you will find that consumerism was very different from those that exist today. There were just a few people in any country that spent a large amount of time and resources on shopping and seeking for goods produced in other communities that were usually far from their own. The majority of each country’s population lived in rural areas in the 17th to 18th century and worked in agriculture. Their items, clothes and household possessions were very much limited compared to today where we have access to receive materials if ever needed.

In today’s society fashions, technological change, and social pressure drives us to constantly purchase new items. Materials and goods were bought and used for years if not decades if no repair were needed.